[SDCC 2019] Top Gun: Maverick – First Trailer For Tom Cruise’s Return To The Danger Zone

Fresh from Comic-Con in San Diego, Paramount Pictures has released the first Top Gun: Maverick trailer featuring Tom Cruise returning to the title role.

‘Oblivion’ Trailer Looks Derivative, Shiny.

Between Jack Reacher and Oblivion, it looks like it’s quickly becoming a pattern that Tom Cruise shall from now on only play characters named Jack. It’s actually another Sci-Fi outing from Tom Cruise, who likes to star in a science fiction movie every couple of years, probably because he’s living one, but I digress from that easy joke. Despite being a huge fan of Sci-Fi, I found myself guessing as to what this movie was an adaptation or remake of, and upon viewing the trailer found myself surprised that it seemed to be an original story! Generic as hell, but still, original! Well my hopes were dashed after researching the movie a bit further, as it IS an adaptation. It’s apparently adapted from an eponymous graphic novel by Joseph Kosinki. If you’ve never heard that name before, don’t worry because neither have I, although you might be familiar with his work. He did that relatively famous Gears Of War video game commercial, set to “Mad World” by Gary Jules. Oh, he also did Tron: Legacy, which I haven’t seen but I’ve heard was good.

The trailer for Oblivion however, looks… Well here, take a look for yourself:

Here’s where I have to emphasize just what a huge fan of Sci-Fi I am, so you don’t misunderstand me when I say this looks like the most derivative, unoriginal, and ultimately boring Sci-Fi film to come along in recent years. I kept watching it and waiting for it to bring in an interesting hook or storyline that would make me excited to actually see the film, and it kinda-sorta got close with the brief allusions to lost memories or whatever near the end there. I’m guessing that Earth isn’t as wiped out as the Evil Totalitarian Government wants poor Jack to think, and there’s a pocket of survivors/resistance on Earth, who are hellbent on rebelling against the Evil Totalitarian Government. They have a cause to expose whatever dark secret they’re hiding, and meanwhile they’re being led by Morgan Freeman and some kind of Darth Vader creature.

Seriously, at 1:53 on the trailer friggin’ Darth Vader outta NOWHERE.

Overall I’m very underwhelmed by the movie, and find myself disappointed that the whole thing wasn’t some super secret adaptation of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion instead. This just looks… disappointing.

Cruise is Playing ‘Jack Reacher’ – We got some Trailers…

With the release of the second Jack Reacher trailer, I can’t help but voice the disappointment felt by Lee Child fans.  However, not all are aware of the character’s origin, and therefore, there are two perspectives in which we can analyze these trailers.  There are those of us familiar with Lee Child’s work, and those who are not.

For those not familiar with Lee Child, he is the author of a gritty crime series of novels featuring Jack Reacher.  The character was first introduced in 1997’s Killing Floor and has since been the main character of 17 Child novels.  To the audience who has not read any of these books, I am sure the trailer looks like an awesome new action suspense film starring the well defined Tom Cruise.  Regardless of the shenanigans we hear about in his personal life, Cruise has still earned a prominent title as an action star.  The Mission Impossible franchise alone has been met with huge box office support.  The fact that the Reacher character resembles his previous role of Ethan Hunt should generate box office support for this title as well.

The set up seems very neo-noir in which we have a, “Who done it?” sequence.  We are also flashed with some clips of Reacher kicking a little butt, and taking a few names.  It was also entertaining to see how Reacher gets the fuzz off of his tail and blends into the crowd next to what I am calling a Morgan Freeman look-alike.  All in all, the film appears to be following 2005’s One Shot close enough.  The general plot is that a man is arrested for the murders of five people killed by an expert sniper.  He asks that they “Get Jack Reacher.”  Reacher shows up but his intention is to prove the man’s guilt, not innocence.  As cliché as it can get, Reacher gets more than he bargained for.

Now to voice the opinion of disappointed Child fans.  Child is detailed and meticulous in his writing.  He has spent over fifteen years developing this character over the course of seventeen novels.  One Shot is the ninth of the seventeen.  So why now?  Why One Shot?  Most importantly, why on Earth was Tom Cruise cast as Jack Reacher?  Jack Reacher, described as being 6’5 somewhere between 210 to 250 pounds, is in no way resembled by Tom Cruise.

Amid the disappointment, I was laughing out loud while watching these trailers considering how many times Cruise is filmed from low angles to give the illusion of height.  All things considered, any one of the previous cast choices would have sufficed.  Brad Pitt, Hugh Jackman, Vince Vaughn, Jamie Foxx, and Will Smith were all considered for the role.  With the selection of Cruise, I can’t help but feel this film is poorly managed and doomed from the start.  Though the PG-13 rating should accommodate a greater audience, true fans will be disappointed that the violence described in the books will not be present in the film.

Reacher is effective not only due to his cunning prowess, but also, his sheer intimidation of size and stature.  Cruise fails to demonstrate this intimidation what so ever.  Reacher is not supposed to be a character that you under estimated, and later wished you hadn’t messed with him.  He is supposed to be a guy that if you saw on the street, you might lower your head a bit when you walk past to make sure you avoid eye contact.  Ultimately, I feel mis-casting will lead to the demise of this film.  It will have its initial box office splurge with those unaware of previous novels but ultimately, I do not expect this film to have any lasting value.

Terrible Photoshop…

The Reboot of ‘Van Helsing’ Nobody Asked For…

It seems like only 8 years ago, people were watching and being disappointed by the movie Van Helsing, starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale. Now if you’re thinking to yourself, “Man, isn’t it time they remake that film?” then I have to ask, what the hell is wrong with you? But according to the  boys over at FilmDrunk, that’s exactly what is happening. Ait get’s better folks, Tom Cruise is said to be attached to this remake.

Mission Impossible 5: Definitely on the way

Hold onto your butts, because it looks like M:I 5 is now officially… official I guess. It was pretty much a forgone conclusion but I would think that word directly from the mouth of the current VIACOM CEO, Philippe Dauman, is pretty definitive. Check out the snippet below from The Hollywood Reporter:

Movie Trailer Roundup: Wrath of the Titans, The Dictator, Lock-Out and MORE!

Wrath of the Titans

Perseus embarks on a treacherous quest into the underworld to rescue Zeus, who has been targeted for capture by his traitorous son, Ares, and his brother, Hades.

Stars: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Bill Nighy, Rosamund Pike, Edgar Ramirez, Danny Huston

Release Date: March 30th, 2012

Hero Express: Dark Knight Station – Here Comes the Prologue

Welcome to Dark Knight Station, the Hero Express‘s main stop for all the news on The Dark Knight Rises. We’ll keep you up to date on all the biggest bat-news coming straight from Gotham City.

Mind the gap and avoid the shadows; This stop is the Dark Knight Station for December 11th, 2011.

The Viral Marketing Campaign Revealed – (Splash page)

You probably remember that The Dark Knight really took advantage of the internet as a marketing tool, bringing fans closer to the movie and using their involvement to blend the movie’s world with reality in really creative ways. For fans it was a really surreal thing to be a part of; I remember being handed a Gotham City newspaper in downtown Toronto one day and reading it on the subway ride home. It made me giddy. So I kind of missed it when The Dark Knight Rises seemed to be going with a traditional, if not leak-filled, ad campaign.

But things have been moving along in the past few days, beginning last week with Wired‘s ‘leaked’ image of a CIA bulletin regarding a missing Russian physicist, and then this accompanying transcript between some unidentified militia and an unknown contact:

Following that, a third piece of the bulletin was released via mysterious Twitter account ‘@thefirerises‘:

The latest part of the missive gave fans mention of ‘Operation Early Bird’, sending them to discover the website of the same name. The page listed a series of numbers and a countdown clock, but they left it to the public to figure out what it meant. It didn’t take them long to do just that. When the clock reached zero, a map of North America and Europe popped up and internet users quickly discovered they were able to pinpoint locations for early screenings of the DKR prologue.

All in all, the campaign was much more subdued than the last movie’s massive undertaking, but it did manage to give us…

Full-length Trailer for “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol”

By now you must have seen the short teaser for the new Mission: Impossible project. Well, yesterday the full trailer for Ghost Protocol was released. Granted it’s more or less just an extension of the shorter promo that has been making the rounds, but it gives us a slightly better look at the plot, and rounds out the supporting cast a little more. Check it out here:

The fourth movie in the franchise obviously stars Tom Cruise, along with Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Josh Holloway and others, and hits theaters December 21, 2011. I’m looking forward to seeing what Brad Bird can do with the series canon, and I’m happy to see more of the IMF.

 

 

Mission Impossible 4 – Starring Hawkeye and Simon Pegg!

Yesterday the new trailer for the latest installment of Mission: Impossible movie franchise hit the net. Now my old mad, an avid fan of the original series, will tell you that the movies were terrible. I would argue that only the John Woo installment (M:I-2) was terrible…

I would say instead that the first movie was pretty decent (Emiliooooo) and the 3rd movie was awesome. It is said 3rd movie – aka “Phillip Seymour Hoffman makes Tom Cruise his bitch” – that give me hope for the 4th. J.J. Abrams directed the 3rd, and is producing the 4th. For those who don’t know, Abrams is the man behind the shows Alias, Lost, and Fringe, as well as the director of movies like Super 8 and my favorite movie of 2009 – Star Trek.

Well this new one, titled Mission: Impossibe – Ghost Protocol, sees Ethan (Cruise) with a new team. In the 3rd movie he was working with Maggie Q – Live Free or Die Hard,  and The Tudors’  Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Not sure yet if Luther – Ving Rhames will show up again. Early reports said he would, but he’s not in the trailer, nor listed on IMDb. This time around though, it appears that Ethan has a whole new team. Maggie, Jonathan, and Ving have been replaced by Paula Patton (Deja ‘Vu), and returning from the last movie, lab tech Benji – played by Simon Pegg (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead, Star Trek)!!!

The movie also features Josh Holloway (Lost Community) and Hawkeye, both in some capacity that is not entirely clear from the trailer. Even Carmine Falcone shows up.

Check out the trailer below! Complete with some local flavor from Eminem doing the music…

Simon Pegg has a gun! This movie is gonna be sweet apparently. It’s currently slated for a December 16th release. What do you think? Yay or nay?